FIFA 2022: Qatar to offer one million doses of vaccination for its fans

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During his first meeting with the editors-in-chief of newspapers based in Qatar, the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani emphasized that the country gets ready to organise the World Cup without the deadly disease of Covid-19 still in place and will be offering one million doses of the “best” vaccines in the world to the fans coming from across the world into the country.

The PM confirmed that the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 are limbering up at the moment and are progressing at an accelerated pace amidst the ongoing challenges caused due to the epidemic.

He mentioned that by the year 2022, majority of the individuals across the globe would be vaccinated against Covid-19 deadly disease. 

He stated that even if some countries are unable to provide Covid vaccinations to their citizens and residents by that time, Qatar will be looking forward to provide at least one million shots of the Covid-19 doses to vaccinate fans who has not yet received their vaccination and wants to attend the FIFA World Cup.

HE PM outlined that Qatar will not permit football fans to enter venues without providing clear evidence of vaccination against Covid-19.

He said: “Therefore, we are currently negotiating with a company to provide one million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to vaccinate non-vaccinated people coming to World Cup Qatar 2022,” he said. 

He further explained “Our primary goal in vaccinating some of the people coming to Qatar to attend the 2022 World Cup is to protect the public health of citizens and residents, as well as to protect fans participating in the tournament.” 

The middle eastern region is working on enhancing the infrastructure ahead of the World Cup with the aim of hosting a unique sports event. 

He highlighted that, “The pandemic had some minor impact in the beginning, but because we started preparing early, we succeeded quickly in ensuring the delivery of the required materials in coordination with the companies working on the World Cup projects.”

He expounded that Qatar is prepared to conduct this global tournament, with construction and of stadiums and infrastructure for the event in full swing.

He said that “Most of the stadiums, part of the mega sport event, have been completed and they are ready to host matches,” pointing out that some have already organised significant football tournaments.

Three of eight World Cup stadiums are still under construction. They are Lusail, Al Thumama and Ras Abu Aboud.

He said that, “Lusail Stadium, which will hold the final match of the FIFA World Cup on December 18, 2022, has been 90% completed.”

Along with that, the PM said that the 2021 Arab Cup will be played one year prior to the start of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, and will show the capabilities of Qatar in organizing main tournament, and will also assess the efficiency and readiness of the infrastructure and facilities in the country ahead of the grand competition.

He confirmed that “In general, things are going smoothly as planned.” He also said that different facilities designated for the 2022 World Cup are ready to the highest standards. These facilities include accommodation, healthcare, and advanced transportation facilities. 

The PM emphasized on Qatar’s eagerness in protecting its people from the current global pandemic through progressing legislation and issuing urgent decisions to combat the virus from the region.

With relation to the National COVID-19 Vaccination Program, the PM expounded that nearlt 72% of the entire eligible population will have had at least one dose of the vaccine by this week.

He said: “There are many countries that have resorted to choosing the available vaccine of any kind, but the State of Qatar moved early and signed contracts with big international companies which have good names in manufacturing pharmaceutical products and conducting the necessary laboratory tests on them and approved by the World Health Organisation.”

He also mentioned that Qatar chose the best vaccines in the world to vaccinate its population such as — Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna — that have been proven effective in clinical trials and authorised by the FDA, adding that the early investment in these companies allowed the state to secure vaccine doses for its people.

He noted that “The government’s efforts succeeded in containing the pandemic. We could not defeat it completely yet, but we overcame the effects of the last wave of mutated strains (British and South African) last March,” he said.

He said that, “We have adopted the implementation of deliberate measures for each of the activities and areas to limit the spread of the virus.”

“It was the first pocket of the pandemic which was contained successfully, preventing it from becoming a source of infection. We benefited from that experience in responding quickly and containing the sources of increasing infection rates,” he added.